How will Avs fare after new additions from head coach to Jumbotron?

Here are 10 questions that will determine how well the Avalanche does in 2013-14.

1. "Will Patrick Roy really be ready to coach in the NHL?" ? I say yes, yes, a thousand times yes. He's paid his dues. He's ready for his close-up behind the bench. He's going to be very good at this.

2. "What will be the one thing that most accelerates some dark hairs to gray?" ? The defense. It won't be great. Patrick will have to spin a few plates and get the smoke and mirrors just right to make that defense adequate.

3. "Ryan O'Reilly will be a left winger. Is this the wrong decision?" ? Could be. He's been a center his whole life, but now he'll be expected to be the one who changes position for the good of the team. But with Paul Stastny, Matt Duchene and Nathan MacKinnon already here as centers, O'Reilly was the odd-man out.

4. "If O'Reilly doesn't play well, is it a foregone conclusion he'll be traded later in the season?" ? Not necessarily. Both he and Stastny are entering their final contract years, but the Avs would retain O'Reilly's rights after this coming season ends. Not so with Stastny. He can become an unrestricted free agent. If they don't think the numbers on a future deal add up, Stastny would be prime trade bait at the deadline.

5. "Doesn't it look like either Stastny or O'Reilly will have to go at some point soon?" ? Yeah, probably.

6. "Was it more than a little alarming the other day when new goalie coach Francois Allaire was quoted as saying he thinks, after talking with him, that Semyon Varlamov wants to "flush everything out" and start over with new working concepts in goal?" ? Alarming? No, not necessarily. A

Avalanche coach Patrick Roy (John Leyba, Denver Post file)

tad worrisome? Perhaps, but overall I think it's a good thing Varlamov wants to submit to his new teacher with a mind-set of "let's try anything, if it will work." Allaire has a proven track record of turning around the careers of previous goalies, so this development could be one of the best of the summer for the Avs.

7. "Who should be captain of the Avs?" ? With no offense to Gabe Landeskog, I think Matt Duchene has emerged as the real leader of this team. Landeskog would make a great alternate captain, but there were too many things last season that hinted the young Swede was not quite ready. Exhibit A: It should have been Landeskog who went off in the locker room after a late-season, desultory loss to Calgary. Instead, it was left to J.S. Giguere to do it. Maybe Jiggy should really get the "C," except they don't allow goalies to be captains in the NHL.

8. "Is Erik Johnson training himself silly right now, looking like Clubber Lang in 'Rocky III,' ready to prove everyone he's champion material?" ? Just wonderin'.

9. "Is the new Jumbotron going to make going to the Pepsi Center a much better experience?" ? I hear it'll be semi-mind blowing.

10. "How hard will it be to get through all of August with zero hockey talk while you are on vacation?" ? Tough, very tough. But I'll figure out some way to compensate on a beach on Cape Cod very soon.

Until then ... I'll send you all a postcard.

Adrian Dater: 303-954-1360, adater@denverpost.com or twitter.com/adater

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